2023 Tahoe Premier: leaking fluid from front, minor swaying/rough ride

Hello, Tahoe and Yukon enthusiasts:

I've got two pre-diagnostic questions about my 2023 Tahoe Premier, for which I have a scheduled dealer appointmet next week.

Leaking fluid
1.) The truck started leaking a fluid from under the front third of the vehicle recently (looks like from somewhere under the back-half of the engine but not totally sure). The fluid looks clear and does not appear to be oil or coolant. Additionally, when my garage is hot on a full summer day, the liquid will sizzle and partially evaporate when it hits the hot cement floor, which suggests the liuquid is water or at least water-based. I think but cannot confirm this leak was caused by a piece of road debris striking the underside of my Tahoe on the interstate on a road trip last week.

Any ideas what this fluid might be?

Swaying, rough ride
2.) The truck sways slightly on engine start and also sways on idle, such as at a stoplight. The sway is minor, but I can feel it — like something is rotating and tilting the vehicle to one side slightly.

Additionally, the overall ride feels rough, and I wonder if this is related.

For example, I feel shaking and bumpininess even on brand new interstate road, which looks fresh and smooth. I would expect a Tahoe Premier with magnaride to feel totally smooth on new road. When I test drove various Tahoe and Yukon models ~two years ago, I remember the rides being totally smooth, mirroring the descripotions of various video and written reviews I had watched and read during the research phase.

I noticed this soon after I drove off the lot and swapped out my 20-inch wheels for 18-inch wheels (or maybe it was 22 for 20, I don't recall) for more tire and less wheel for a smoother ride, but it didn't totally help.

I wonder if my expectations the ride of a 2023 Tahoe with magnaride are too high or if there is something I can do about this.

Thanks!

Your expectations are not too high!
Paying close to or over $80k you should expect smooth ride, no leaks and no noises!
Every time I read one of these posts on noise, leaking or ride issues I think people are getting too complacent and not holding dealer to the fire.

Maybe im lucky as my 2024 Tahoe is pretty close to perfect - quiet, smooth shifting and and absolutely no vibration or shaking, but I expect a new truck at these prices to be perfect, no leaks, and smooth quiet ride.

If my truck had any of these problems I would be back at the dealer and making noise of my own. It’s not too much to ask for a higher price vehicle to be worth the price

Tahoe23Life said:

Hello, Tahoe and Yukon enthusiasts:

I've got two pre-diagnostic questions about my 2023 Tahoe Premier, for which I have a scheduled dealer appointmet next week.

Leaking fluid
1.) The truck started leaking a fluid from under the front third of the vehicle recently (looks like from somewhere under the back-half of the engine but not totally sure). The fluid looks clear and does not appear to be oil or coolant. Additionally, when my garage is hot on a full summer day, the liquid will sizzle and partially evaporate when it hits the hot cement floor, which suggests the liuquid is water or at least water-based. I think but cannot confirm this leak was caused by a piece of road debris striking the underside of my Tahoe on the interstate on a road trip last week.

Any ideas what this fluid might be?

Swaying, rough ride
2.) The truck sways slightly on engine start and also sways on idle, such as at a stoplight. The sway is minor, but I can feel it — like something is rotating and tilting the vehicle to one side slightly.

Additionally, the overall ride feels rough, and I wonder if this is related.

For example, I feel shaking and bumpininess even on brand new interstate road, which looks fresh and smooth. I would expect a Tahoe Premier with magnaride to feel totally smooth on new road. When I test drove various Tahoe and Yukon models ~two years ago, I remember the rides being totally smooth, mirroring the descripotions of various video and written reviews I had watched and read during the research phase.

I noticed this soon after I drove off the lot and swapped out my 20-inch wheels for 18-inch wheels (or maybe it was 22 for 20, I don't recall) for more tire and less wheel for a smoother ride, but it didn't totally help.

I wonder if my expectations the ride of a 2023 Tahoe with magnaride are too high or if there is something I can do about .

Click to expand...

Tahoe23Life said:

Thanks!

Click to expand...

On the first leak issue if it looks like water and sizzles its the AC condensation dripping and some is hitting the exhaust manifold pipe some is dripping on the floor it sizzles when hitting the pipe, my 19 silverado and the wife's 22 tahoe does the same.

On the second one they will probably rebalanced the tires, but I will say they put new asphalt on some of the roads around here and have ripples making the tahoe and silverado vibrate till I move to another lane you can also see the ripples when the sun shines on it at a angle.

The 3rd my silverado and the tahoe will rock when engine is first started.

BacDoc said:

Your expectations are not too high!
Paying close to or over $80k you should expect smooth ride, no leaks and no noises!
Every time I read one of these posts on noise, leaking or ride issues I think people are getting too complacent and not holding dealer to the fire.

Maybe im lucky as my 2024 Tahoe is pretty close to perfect - quiet, smooth shifting and and absolutely no vibration or shaking, but I expect a new truck at these prices to be perfect, no leaks, and smooth quiet ride.

If my truck had any of these problems I would be back at the dealer and making noise of my own. It’s not too much to ask for a higher price vehicle to be worth the price

Click to expand...

What trim and suspension sysstem does your Tahoe have?

Silverado4x4 said:

On the first leak issue if it looks like water and sizzles its the AC condensation dripping and some is hitting the exhaust manifold pipe some is dripping on the floor it sizzles when hitting the pipe, my 19 silverado and the wife's 22 tahoe does the same.

On the second one they will probably rebalanced the tires, but I will say they put new asphalt on some of the roads around here and have ripples making the tahoe and silverado vibrate till I move to another lane you can also see the ripples when the sun shines on it at a angle.

The 3rd my silverado and the tahoe will rock when engine is first started.

Click to expand...

Would AC condensation dripping from below the engine be something to worry about? It's defintely dripping from the front third of the truck and not the exhaust at the rear.

As for rebalancing the tires, I just had a tire rotation there around a month ago. Anything else come to mind that might cause the bumpiness? I'll pay more attention to possible ripples on new pavement/interstate. I would think the truck would absorb minor ripples, though.

Tahoe23Life said:

What trim and suspension sysstem does your Tahoe have?

Click to expand...

I have air suspension and magnetic ride in my 6.2l 2WD Tahoe High Country. It’s got almost 4k miles. Bought it new. It’s my daily driver and
I tow a boat/trailer that goes around 6500lbs around once a week.

I changed oil at 1000k and plan on changing oil 3-4k miles. I check oil dip stick couple times a month and check the driveway and garage floor, if I saw any leaks I would be back at the dealership complaining. New truck should not leak, use oil, or make any strange noises at idle, under throttle or slowing down. I don’t think that’s too much to expect from any new truck regardless of trim level.

AC condensation is normal and acceptable - outside the vehicle!

I had a 4WD Ford Explorer that was great fun to drive, good offroad performance and towing but it started leaking oil about a year after new. Took it back many times and the dealer said it was “fixed” and it would start leaking again in couple months. Not much but enough to see on garage floor. Plus every time I made a hard left turn it would dump AC water in the passenger side!

Took it to an independent mechanic who said “yeah it’s a great engine in that Explorer but all those Fords leak oil “. And “yeah those Fords get the AC drain clogged - you just have to get a coat hanger and ream out the drain hose every couple months” WTF? For a truck less than 2 years old?

I got rid of the truck shortly after that!

Maybe I am picky but no new truck should leak oil or anything else in the cabin!

FWIW I've got around 25,000 miles on mine. My engine is the 5.3, so not sure if the 6.2 would rider smoother or not. The fluid is definitely dripping outside. No leaks inside at all, and I did not notice any leaking last summer. I do want the serivice department to have a look underneath in case something got dinged on the underside.

Have them check your transmission / torque converter. What may seem like small ripples or small little shocks on a perfectly smooth road may actually be shuddering from torque converter. I was recently riding in a co workers Silverado on a perfectly smooth road and he was saying how he needs to visit dealership to resolve this issue. His second time going through that with his Silverado 6.2. Worries me since I believe my 6.2 Tahoe (2022) shares his same exact transmission. SMH.

Tahoe23Life said:

Would AC condensation dripping from below the engine be something to worry about? It's defintely dripping from the front third of the truck and not the exhaust at the rear.

Click to expand...

Iam not talking about the exhaust at the rear it's the exhaust pipes that come off the left and right side motor condensation drips from the AC drain hits the pipe and makes a sizzle sound some drip on the floor which is water. Get under and look and you will see what I mean.